1 month ago
11
Storm Debby
's passage through the Washington, DC area triggered an uncommon
tornado warning
for the
US Capitol
complex. As a result, the US Capitol Police instructed all personnel within the Capitol Complex to promptly relocate to their office's designated severe weather shelter locations.
The Police indicated to take emergency equipment and visitors with them.
If people were not near their offices, they were directed to go to the nearest office and shelter there, The New York Post reported.
The police emphasized that no one should leave the building until given explicit permission. The inclement weather also affected the Washington Nationals baseball team, causing a delay in their scheduled game on Thursday.
Storm Debby has struck South Carolina for the second time as it travels up the East Coast, causing destructive tornadoes and new flooding. The storm has left over 130,000 individuals without electricity due to tornado activity, which has also resulted in extensive structural damage.
According to the
National Hurricane Center
, Debby made landfall early Thursday near Bulls Bay, South Carolina, initially as a Category 1 hurricane, leading to a temporary closure of a section of Interstate 95. The tropical storm is now expected to continue moving inland, bringing heavy rainfall and potential flooding to the mid-Atlantic and Northeast regions by the weekend.
Early Thursday morning, the storm had maximum sustained winds of 45 mph in Miami, with its center located approximately 90 miles north of Charleston, South Carolina. As Debby moved into North Carolina, there were reports of emergency responders in Wilson County searching for a man possibly trapped inside, as reported by local news outlet ABC11.
Additionally, three tornado warnings have been issued east of Raleigh, NC, as well as in Dortches and Rocky Mount.
Debby continues to cause flooding in parts of eastern South Carolina and southeast North Carolina, with an additional 3 to 9 inches (8 to 23 centimeters) of rain possible as the storm moves north. This raises concerns about flash floods in the mountainous areas of West Virginia.
As the remnants of Storm Debby approached the region on Friday morning, New York City airports faced ground delays, and parts of New Jersey were under a tornado threat.
Due to thunderstorms, LaGuardia Airport in Queens implemented a ground stop at 7:15 a.m., which was later reduced to a ground delay by 8:21 a.m., according to PIX11. The outlet reported that travelers should still anticipate delays exceeding an hour.
The FAA stated that Newark Liberty International Airport experienced departure delays of approximately 45 minutes, while John F. Kennedy International Airport had delays of about 30 minutes.
In response to the potential for severe thunderstorms from Debby, which the National Hurricane Center officially downgraded to a post-tropical cyclone, a tornado watch was issued for 17 New Jersey counties. Additionally, the entire state was under a wind advisory, with anticipated gusts of up to 50 mph.
Debby made its initial landfall as a Category 1 hurricane along Florida's Big Bend, causing over 20 inches of rain to fall on the state's southwest region and leaving more than 300,000 customers without power.
After making a second landfall in South Carolina, Debby is expected to bring heavy rains to parts of the East Coast through Sunday, with the highest totals anticipated along the Interstate 95 corridor from the mid-Atlantic to the Northeast.
English (US) · 